Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: CLEAN GETAWAY by Nic Stone

Clean Getaway

CLEAN GETAWAY by Nic Stone (Crown, 2020)

What It's About (from Random House web page):

How to Go on an Unplanned Road Trip with Your Grandma:

    Grab a Suitcase: Prepacked from the big spring break trip that got CANCELLED.

    Fasten Your Seatbelt: G’ma’s never conventional, so this trip won’t be either.

    Use the Green Book: G’ma’s most treasured possession. It holds history, memories, and most important, the way home.

What Not to Bring:

    A Cell Phone: Avoid contact with Dad at all costs. Even when G’ma starts acting stranger than usual.

Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, take a trip with this New York Times bestseller and an eleven-year-old boy who is about to discover that the world hasn’t always been a welcoming place for kids like him, and things aren’t always what they seem–his G’ma included.”

Opening Lines:

"It might sound silly, but to William "Scoob" Lamar, the WELCOME TO ALABAMA THE BEAUTIFUL sign looks... well, beautiful. Not as beautiful as his beat friend Shenice Lockwood in her yellow sundress, but beautiful enough to make Scoob tip his head back, close his eyes, and sigh into the breeze blowing through the open passenger-side window in G'ma's Winnebago."

The Mafioso's Thoughts:
I have to say when you see a blurb from Christopher Paul Curtis that this is "a book that deserves to be eaten by young people!" that one's appetite is whetted. And, as often happens serendipitously, I have just finished JUST MERCY by Bryan Stevenson (which is a wonderfully written indictment of our criminal justice system, especially its racial bias)--and CLEAN GETAWAY has an inscription by him in its front matter: "Each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done." The signs were there for all to see: this novel was calling my name!

This is an engrossing tale about family dynamics, and righting past wrongs. G'ma is a hoot, and Scoob is appealing from the get-go. What is revealed as the story progresses is the hurt and hardship the characters have suffered, which doesn't define them, but makes them whole human beings, warts and all. As they make their way across the South is G'ma's new RV, the stories of black history come alive. They visit Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Montgomery, where four little girls were killed in a bombing. They stop at the house where Medgar Evers was assassinated. (They also hit a Six Flags Amusement Park and go on all the cool rides.) During this trip, a lot of family history is revealed, and Scoob gets a better understanding of why his own father is the person he is.

This was a fast read, and the characters were appealing. I loved the artwork within, and the general design on the page. Nic Stone does a great job of weaving African American history into a boy's understanding of himself and his family. Loved it!

About the Author:
Nic Stone is an Atlanta native and a Spelman College graduate. After working extensively in teen mentoring and living in Israel for several years, she returned to the United States to write full-time. Nic’s debut novel for young adults, Dear Martin, was a New York Times bestseller and a William C. Morris Award finalist. She is also the author of the teen titles Odd One Out, a novel about discovering oneself and who it is okay to love, which was an NPR Best Book of the Year and a Rainbow Book List Top Ten selection, and Jackpot, a love-ish story that takes a searing look at economic inequality.


Clean Getaway, Nic’s first middle-grade novel, deals with coming to grips with the pain of the past and facing the humanity of our heroes. Nic lives in Atlanta with her adorable little family.

Photo: © Nigel Livingstone

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: THINGS SEEN FROM ABOVE by Shelley Pearsall

THINGS SEEM FROM ABOVE  

by Shelley Pearsall (Knopf, February 4, 2020)

What It's About (from Random House website):April is looking for an escape from the sixth-grade lunch hour, which has become a social-scene nightmare, so she signs up to be a “buddy bench monitor” for the fourth graders’ recess.

Joey Byrd is a boy on the fringes, who wanders the playground alone, dragging his foot through the dirt. But over time, April realizes that Joey isn’t just making random circles. When you look at his designs from above, a story emerges… Joey’s “bird’s eye” drawings reveal what he observes and thinks about every day.

Told in alternating viewpoints–April’s in text and Joey’s mostly in art–the story gives the “whole picture” of what happens as these two outsiders find their rightful places.

Opening Lines:

Joey Byrd looked like he was dead.
I'm not joking.
Pretty much everybody at Marshallville Elementary knew who Joey Byrd was.
You could be walking to lunch or gym class, and suddenly you'd notice this pale-haired boy lying flat on the hallway tiles--arms out, eyes closed--as if he'd just been struck by a bolt of lightning. Usually a teacher would be standing nearby trying to coax him to get up and motioning for everyone else to go around, saying, "Just ignore him. Keep moving."

The Mafioso's Thoughts:
The Don and I have found a new favorite author. Shelley Pearsall hit this dual narrative out of the park. Most of the chapters are in April's first person POV, with interspersed third person chapters from Joey's POV. We get a well-rounded view of both of these central characters.

April is, quite simply, a delight. She's empathetic, intelligent, reflective and also full of that 6th grade worry of "what are others thinking about me?" and "do I fit in?" It is totally believable that she would choose to help out on the "buddy bench" rather than dealing with the stresses and strains of the lunch room. Joey, on the other hand, is a "rare bird," as designated by Mr. Ulysses, the genial janitor. I'm not sure of the type of learning differences he has, but he has an uncanny ability to trace patterns on the ground as if "seen from above." Initially disliked for his differences, he becomes as person of interest as his artwork gains notice from the town, eventually leading to a beautiful scene at the high school homecoming game.

This is a tremendous story about kids who don't quite fit in. I'll quote Mr. Ulysses, who hits the nail on the head:

"...every once in a while, a rare bird shows up. They are kids like Joey with something different, something unique, something unfamiliar about them--kids who land here for a short period of time to see if anybody notices them.... Usually no one does. Anything that is different or unusual makes most people uncomfortable. They stay away as far as they can. And before long, the rare bird gives up and moves on, and nobody knows the possibilities that they just missed." (page 234)

This is made all the more poignant because Shelley Pearsall's nephew, Miles, was the inspiration for the novel. Each one of us, I'm sure, has come across a rare bird in our lives, either as relatives, or friends, or students. When we are young, we often don't know how to proceed ("anything that is different or unusual makes most people uncomfortable"). We are often thoughtless, if not cruel. With maturity, hopefully, we come to appreciate the gifts of the rare birds among us.

The art work, by Xingye Jin, is magnificent. With the Don's blessing, I'm going in search of more Shelley Pearsall!

Remember #StayHomeSaveLives

About the Author (from Random House author page and from Shelley's website):
A former teacher and museum historian, Shelley Pearsall is now a full-time author. Her first novel, Trouble Don’t Last, won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction. Her latest book was The Seventh Most Important Thing, which earned three starred reviews and was named an ALA Notable Book. Shelley lives in Ohio's beautiful Cuyahoga Valley National Park with her British husband, Mike, and their shelter cat named Charlie.  When Shelley isn’t writing or visiting schools, Shelley and Mike love to travel the world in search of new stories and adventures. To learn more about the author and her work, visit her WEBSITE

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: THE ENDLESS STEPPE by Esther Hautzig

THE ENDLESS STEPPE by Esther Hautzig (HarperCollins 1968)

What It's About (from Goodreads):
In June 1941, the Rudomin family is arrested by the Russians. They are accused of being capitalists, “enemies of the people.” Forced from their home and friends in Vilna, Poland, they are herded into crowded cattle cars. Their destination: the endless steppe of Siberia.

For five years, Esther and her family live in exile, weeding potato fields, working in the mines, and struggling to stay alive. But in the middle of hardship and oppression, the strength of their small family sustains them and gives them hope for the future.


The first winner of the Sydney Taylor Awards was Esther Hautzig's The Endless Steppe: Growing Up in Siberia, and 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of this powerful classic.

Opening Lines:

"The morning it happened--the end of my lovely world--I did not water the lilac bush outside my father's study. 

The time was June 1941 and the place was Vilna, a city in the northeastern corner of Poland. And I was ten years old and took it quite for granted that all over the globe people tended their gardens on such a morning as this. Wars and bombs stopped at the garden gates, happened on the far side of garden walls."

The Mafioso's Thoughts: 

I'm currently writing an adult novel, loosely based on my grandfather's escape from revolutionary Russia, through Siberia and into China. I've therefore been reading a lot for research, since I've never been to Siberia and doubt I'll get there anytime soon. Esther Hautzig's luminous memoir was one of the books recommended on my library's website, and I was jolly glad I read it.

It is quite amazing what the human body and soul can survive. In this age of a viral pandemic, this is uppermost in my mind, but at least my family and I are not being forced onto cattle cars, or being bombed out of our home. Esther, her father, mother, and grandmother, are separated from grandfather in one of the book's opening and highly emotional scenes. The Russians who have invaded Vilna are capricious, and the grandfather is the only one of the family sent elsewhere (we later learn it is to one of Stalin's labor camps, and that he doesn't survive.)

The journey is a tribulation, and they arrive in Siberia half-starved. They are first put to work in a gypsum mine, and then told they can work in the village--on condition they can find housing. Everyday living is a huge chore: they have only the clothes they arrived in, have to scrabble to find food, and have to walk miles to school and to their jobs. But despite this, they make friends with the Siberians, who seem unconcerned that the family is Jewish. Esther proves herself a good student and shows great initiative, knitting clothes for some of the locals in payment for potatoes and milk.

In the end, Esther doesn't want to leave her new home. She has Russian friends, and a boy who is fond of her. As she says, "I was desperately, terribly afraid of change. Perhaps the thought of going back to a world no longer inhabited by the people I loved had something to do with it."

The Endless Steppe would be an excellent classroom read-aloud, and a great addition to any study of family survival in the second world war (or any war, for that matter!) I found it immensely moving.

About the Author:
Esther R. Hautzig (1930-2009) was an American writer, best known for her award-winning book The Endless Steppe. Esther Rudomin was born in Wilno, Poland, now known as Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Her childhood was gravely interrupted by the beginning of World War II and the conquest in 1941 of eastern Poland by Soviet troops. Her family was uprooted and deported to Rubtsovsk, Siberia, where Esther spent the next five years in harsh exile. Her award-winning novel The Endless Steppe is an autobiographical account of those years in Siberia. After the war, when she was 15, she and her family moved back to Poland, although in her heart, Esther wanted to stay.

Rudomin met Walter Hautzig, a concert pianist, while en route to America on a student visa in 1947. They married in 1950, and had two children, Deborah, a children's author, and David. Hautzig reportedly wrote The Endless Steppe at the prompting of Presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson, to whom she had written after reading his articles about his visit to Rubtsovsk. She died on November 1, 2009, aged 79, from a combination of congestive heart failure and complications from Alzheimers disease.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: NESSIE QUEST by Melissa Savage

 

Nessie Quest by Melissa Savage (Penguin Random House, January 14, 2020)

What it’s about:
Ada Ru finally thought her parents were going to agree to a Fitzhugh family vacation in Disney World the summer before sixth grade, until her father announces he’s taking a teaching position in Scotland, and moving the family there for the entire summer.

Ada Ru is anything but happy. She doesn’t like their new home, she hates haggis, and she certainly doesn’t like the idea that she will be away from her best friend all summer. To top it all off, there is said to be a monster in the lake near their house!

That’s when she meets Hamish Bean Tibby, Hammy Bean for short, captain of the Nessie Quest Monster Chaser boat tour. He knows everything there is to know about the fabled Loch Ness Monster and Scotland. But as the two unlikely friends embark on an epic adventure to spot the lake monster, they end up discovering more than they ever could have imagined.


Opening Lines:

“Words may seem innocent enough, but I’m here to tell you that they’re a way bigger deal than most people know.
They are so powerful, in fact, that they can change you in a single, solitary second.”

The Mafioso’s Thoughts:

What a great idea for a middle grade novel! It’s a totally fish-out-of-water (pun intended) caper, set on the bonny bonny banks of Loch Ness in Scotland, with a delightful  cast of characters.

Adelaide Ru Fitzhugh (nicknames include Ada Ru, Ru, Denver etc.) is the character telling the story. She’s twelve, lives in Denver, and wants to spend the summer at Disney World. Instead, she gets to accompany her parents to her father’s ancestral Scotland, where they are spending the summer at a former monastery. Ada Ru is initially determined not to have a good time at all, but she soon gets herself involved with a couple of other kids, one of whom—Hamish Bean Tibby, aka Hammy Bean—has a mission to be part of the official race to find the whereabouts of the loch’s famous monster, Nessie.

Hammy Bean is eccentric and singularly focused on being taken seriously as a Nessie sleuth. He is also blind, which is a salient part of the story. (In the afterword, we learn that Melissa Savage’s mother is also blind, having developed retinitis pigmentosa as a young woman.) Hammy Bean often thinks himself invisible and feels he is friendless (there is also a subplot about his parents, about whom he feels he has to tell tall tales.) Ada Ru and another friend, a guitar-playing American named Dax (he of the seaweed green eyes and one-lipped smile, who is fast becoming Ada Ru’s crush) become a trio of fast friends, with very believable conflicts and adventures.

I raced through this novel, enjoying the characters and the Scottish setting. In keeping with my usual views of parents in middle grade, I was delighted that Ada Ru’s father and mother were together, and were nurturing without being overbearing. At times, the Scottish phrases were a bit much (does a ten-year-old Scottish boy really say “tatty bye”?) but Hammy Bean’s pluck won me over. I was as sad to see this story end as Ada Ru was to leave for home—and am hoping there may be a sequel. But, even if it is only to be a stand-alone novel, I highly recommend Melissa Savage’s writing. (Once you read this one, go back and read Lemons, which I reviewed in May 2017!) As Ada Ru would say, Melissa Savage's writing has “pop.”

About the Author:

Melissa D. Savage is the author of Lemons, The Truth About Martians, and Nessie Quest. She is currently working on her fourth middle grade book, Karma Moon Ghost Hunter, to be released Spring of 2021.

Melissa is both a writer and a child and family therapist. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona. You can follow her on Twitter at @melissadsavage. WEBSITE

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: PIPPA PARK RAISES HER GAME by Erin Yun

 

PIPPA PARK RAISES HER GAME

by

ERIN YUN

(Fabled Films Press, February 2020)

What It's About (from Goodreads):

A Contemporary Reimagining of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens for Middle Graders

Life is full of great expectations for Korean American Pippa Park. It seems like everyone, from her family to the other kids at school, has a plan for how her life should look. So when Pippa gets a mysterious basketball scholarship to Lakeview Private, she jumps at the chance to reinvent herself by following the “Rules of Cool.”

At Lakeview, Pippa juggles old and new friends, an unrequited crush, and the pressure to perform academically and athletically while keeping her past and her family’s laundromat a secret from her elite new classmates. But when Pippa begins to receive a string of hateful, anonymous messages via social media, her carefully built persona is threatened.

As things begin to spiral out of control, Pippa discovers the real reason she was admitted to Lakeview and wonders if she can keep her old and new lives separate, or if she should even try.

Opening Lines:

"I was the only person in the park. Tucking a damp strand of hair back behind one ear, I surveyed the abandoned slides and empty benches. It was just past six p.m. on a Friday, but it looked like nobody else wanted to be out in the rain."

My Thoughts:
This is the second book I've read in a row with a Korean-American main character, and I am enjoying getting to know a bit more of Korean culture (and food!) Pippa is an endearing and believable 7th-grader, worrying about her status, and making regretful choices. As she says midway through the novel: "I'd wanted a different life, but changing myself into the popular, private school Pippa had left me feeling more alone than ever."

Pippa doesn't disown her ethnicity, but she is embarrassed by her perceived poverty--her small apartment, and the fact that her older sister runs a laundromat. In her posh new private school, she is determined to erase the fact that she transferred from a public school--yet she feels conflicted when she doesn't speak up in support of her friend Buddy, whom she bumps into when she is out with her somewhat catty new social circle, "The Royals." These girls are rich, and they are also the mainstay of the basketball team. I liked the fact that the conflict spilled out into the sports arena, where Pippa has traditionally felt good about herself. There's also the opportunity to reflect on cyberbullying, which is a scourge of the middle school experience.

For an English Literature major (aka geek) like me, I enjoyed the parallels with Dickens' Great Expectations, down to the fact that the Haverford family live in a place called Satis House. As with Dickens, there's a lot going on plot-wise in this novel, but Erin Yun never loses control of the moving pieces. This was a satisfying read with an eye-catching cover. Highly recommended!

About the Author:
Erin Yun grew up in Frisco, Texas. She received her BFA in English from NYU and served as president for its policy debate team. This experience came in handy for her job as the debate consultant for the Tony-nominated Best Play on Broadway: What the Constitution Means to Me. She currently lives in New York City, and yes--she used to play basketball as a middle grader! WEBSITE

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: THE WORLD ENDS IN APRIL by Stacy McAnulty

THE WORLD ENDS IN APRIL by Stacy McAnulty (Random House Books for Young Readers, September 3, 2019)

What It's About (from Stacy's website):
Eleanor Dross knows a thing or two about the end of the world,  thanks to a survivalist grandfather who stockpiles freeze-dried food and supplies--just in case. So when she reads about a Harvard scientist's prediction that an asteroid will strike Earth in April, Eleanor knows her family will be prepared. Her classmates? They're on their own!

Eleanor  has just one friend she wants to keep safe: Mack. They've been best  friends since kindergarten, even though he's more of a smiley emoji and she's more of an eye-roll emoji. They'll survive the end of the world  together. . . if Mack doesn't go away to a special school for the  blind.


But it's hard to keep quiet about a life-destroying asteroid--especially at a crowded lunch table--and soon Eleanor is the  president of the (secret) End of the World Club. It turns out that prepping for TEOTWAWKI (the End of the World as We Know It) is actually  kind of fun. But you can't really prepare for everything life drops on  you. And one way or another, Eleanor's world is about to change.

Opening Lines: 
"Mack Jefferson, my best--and only--friend, reads to me from his Braille edition of The Outsiders. I'm spread out on the floor of my bedroom with my dog, Bubbles, running my hand through her soft belly fur and wondering if we have any pudding cups in the pantry."

The Mafioso's Verdict:
As you probably know from my post last month, things have been a little different on the Mafioso reading and writing front. I'm still enjoying my new job, and I'm still researching Shanghai in the 1930s, but I did also get the yen to read some middle grade (hooray!) As one of my clients stays in bed until 9:30 a.m., and I get to work at 7, I have a good couple of hours to plunge into a novel.

How did I choose Stacy McAnulty's book over the boxes of books waiting for my eagle eye and perusal? The eye-catching cover, for one, but also the fact that it involved a survivalist grandfather, a character I hadn't come across before. Good criminy, thought I, with the planet hurtling towards destruction via our making the climate go wonky, this should be a good read.

I wasn't disappointed. Except the planet's destruction in this case, is potentially via asteroid. I really liked the way the author wove in astronomy and science, and the way I was reminded that I really need to collect items for my emergency readiness kit. (In Portland, it's all about the "big one", the earthquake we're constantly told we are overdue for.)

The MC, Eleanor Dross, could have been a bit of a sad sack, but seeing things through her POV, we appreciate her inner life and her way of describing things. ("I never thought about a kid being lonely on Christmas. In commercials and movies, it's always old people who are alone. A gray-haired lady and her cats or the grumpy neighbor who spends most of his time shoveling." page 174) Eleanor's best friend is the sunny Mack, and she has a nemesis, Londyn Diggs, with whom she develops an initially prickly friendship. This character arc was especially well done.

This would be a fun read in a 5th/6th grade classroom, with the possibility for an important discussion about emergency prep, NASA, how to figure out if a website is a legitimate source or not, or setting up a school club. I'd certainly read other work by this talented, humorous author!

About The Author (from the author's website):
Stacy McAnulty is a children’s book author, who used to be a mechanical engineer, and dreams of someday being a dog therapist, a correspondent for The Daily Show, an astronaut, and a Green Bay Packer coach. She has written dozens of books including her debut middle-grade novel, The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl , an Indie Bestseller, and the 2017 Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Honor book Excellent Ed, illustrated by Julia Sarcone-Roach. Her other picture books include Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years, illustrated by David Litchfield; Moon! Earth’s Best Friend and Sun! One in a Billion, both illustrated by Stevie Lewis; Max Explains Everything: Grocery Store Expert and Soccer Expert, both illustrated by Deborah Hocking; Love, Brave, and Beautiful, all three illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff; Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He’s the Favorite, illustrated by Edward Hemingway; and 101 Reasons Why I’m Not Taking a Bath, illustrated by Joy Ang. She’s also authored the chapter book series The Dino Files and Goldie Blox. When not writing, Stacy likes to listen to NPR, bake triple-chocolate cupcakes, and eat triple-chocolate cupcakes. Originally from upstate NY, she now lives in Kernersville, NC with her 3 kids, 3 dogs, and 1 husband.
Website  Facebook  Twitter

MARVELOUS MIDDLE GRADE MONDAY: No Fixed Address by Susin Nielsen

NO FIXED ADDRESS by Susin Nielsen (Wendy Lamb Books, September 2018)

What It's About (from jacket cover): 
Twelve-and-three-quarter-year-old Felix Knutsson has a knack for trivia. His favorite game show is Who What Where When; he even named his gerbil after the host. Felix's mom, Astrid, is loving but can't seem to hold on to a job. So when they get evicted from their latest shabby apartment, they have to move into a van. Astrid swears him to secrecy; he can't tell anyone about their living arrangement, not even Dylan and Winnie, his best friends at his new school. If he does, she warns him, he'll be taken away from her and put in foster care.


As their circumstances go from bad to worse, Felix gets a chance to audition for a junior edition of Who What Where When, and he's determined to earn a spot on the show. Winning the cash prize could make everything okay again. But things don't turn out the way he expects. . . .

Opening Lines:

November 27, 12:05 a.m. 

My leg jiggled up and down. I shifted from one bum cheek to the other. My palms felt damp and my heart was pounding. "I've never been interrogated before." 

"You're not being interrogated, Felix. We're just having a chat."

Why I Loved It:
My kids have read books by Susin Nielsen before (Word Nerd; Dear George Clooney: Please Marry My Mom) but for some reason I've never before done so. That has all changed because I adored No Fixed Address and am currently sneaking into the kids' bedrooms to steal those other titles off their shelves.

Nielsen has written a fantastic book with complicated characters about homelessness and hope. From the very first sentences, Felix is endearing. He also has to endure his mother, Astrid, who lies, cheats, and steals. As Felix says of her: "My mom is really good at making friends, and even better at losing them." As with most people like Astrid, there is fierce love and also fierce anger from Felix at all the situations she gets them into. But, masterfully, Nielsen reveals reasons for why Astrid is who she is. Both Felix and Astrid are two of the most wonderfully drawn characters in recent middle grade literature.

As Felix moves from school to school, he eventually reunites with an earlier friend, Dylan Brinkerhoff. I loved the friendship--the silly jokes and the way these two boys enjoyed one another. They even make room for Winnie Wu, a Hermione Granger type character, with whom Felix awkwardly goes to the prom.

Initially, it seems that Felix might be too ideal of a character, but he is capable of lashing out at his friends, even when he knows they are trying to help him.

I loved the insights into Swedish culture, as well as the other parts of Felix's heritage. (His father is part Haitian and part French.) There were also insights about dealing with depression, and trying to make it as an artist. And you could learn a lot of information from accompanying Felix in his cramming sessions for the quiz show.

If I were a 5th-grade teacher, this wonderful, complex, funny, and tear-making novel would be one of my "read-aloud" books. I read it almost in one sitting, and have been raving about it all week--so much so that it now looks like my wife is planning to sneak to my bookshelves and steal it for herself. So, in a way, we are all Astrids in this mafioso household!

If I had three thumbs, this would be a three-thumbs-up book. As I have to make do with two, two-thumbs-up will have to do. Terrific job, Susin Nielsen.

About the Author (from the jacket copy):
“This is the first day I’ve written in a diary. The reason I am, is ‘cos I love writing stories, and if I do grow up to be a famous writer, and later die, and they want to get a story of my life ... I guess I should keep (one).” SUSIN NIELSEN wrote this poorly constructed sentence when she was eleven years old. And while she isn’t exactly famous (although she likes to think she’s ‘Big in Belgium’), and no one has written the story of her life (maybe because she isn’t dead yet), she did predict her future.  She got her start writing for the hit TV series Degrassi Junior High, and went on to write for over twenty Canadian shows. More recently she turned her hand to novel writing. She is the author of five critically-acclaimed and award-winning titles, including Optimists Die First, We Are All Made of Molecules, and The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen.


Nielsen has been called the John Green of Canada. She once had a dream that John Green had been called the Susin Nielsen of the United States. She lives in Vancouver, BC with her family and two naughty cats.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: LAST OF THE NAME by Rosanne Parry

LAST OF THE NAME by Rosanne Parry (Carolrhoda Books, April 2, 2019

Confession: Rosanne Parry is a mentor and friend of mine. So I'm letting the Don have his way with the keyboard this week. Take it away, Don Corleone.

What It's About:
Twelve-year-old Danny O’Carolan arrives in New York City with nothing but his father’s songs, his brothers’ dance steps, and his his older sister, Kathleen. Driven from their home in Ireland, they must find work or they’ll end up at the dreaded orphan’s asylum. But there’s no steady work for boys, except joining the Union Army as a drummer. So Kathleen finds a job in domestic service for herself and her younger . . . sister. Danny reluctantly pretends to be a girl to avoid the workhouse and the battlefield. But when he’s not doing the backbreaking work of a housemaid, he sneaks off without his disguise. Roaming the streets of New York, he discovers how many different kinds of people live in its neighborhoods. Irish, German, and Italian immigrants, as well as free black people. All poor. All competing for the same jobs. All softened, Danny finds, by a song and bit of footwork. But the draft is on the horizon, threatening to force more Irishmen into the army. As tensions threaten to spill over into violence, how can Danny—the last bearer of the O’Carolan name—stay true to his family’s legacy and find a safe place to call home?

Opening Lines:
Granny says I'm seven devils in one pair of shoes. She doesn't know the half of it. Trouble is always nipping at my heels."

The Don's Verdict:
So I was looking over the latest book shipment Michale gets from them publishers, and this Last of the Name cover took my fancy. Then, Michale started all this drivel about conflict of interest, so I told him to head downtown for a cappuccino and a pastrami sandwich. He's got no work ethic, so that'll keep him out of the office for at least half a day.

I rolled up my sleeves and jumped right in. What can I say, fellas? This is one good book. Oh I know it's about the Irish, but one of the main characters is also an Italian, and he kind of saves the day. Plus, there's music and dancing and nuns and newspapers: it's all about New York, New York, bambini.

I know youse are sayin' "Don, you're not a literary man," but that ain't true. I can tell a story with the best of 'em--just look at that tale I told Puzo about mi famiglia, as well as the way I bankroll this here blog. (If Michale wasn't so hoity toity about people touching his precious laptop--which I bought him by the way, just saying--I'd be writing these reviews much more often.)

This Rosanne Parry knows her stuff. She must be a history teacher, because she sure knows what New York was like in 1863. She brings the place alive. From the ship to the docks, to the houses of the rich, to the orphanages and theaters and alleyways: she had me right there, 100 percent. The only thing missing was an Italian restaurant, but you can't win 'em all.

The characters are like real people. If you've ever had an older sister, you'll recognize Kathleen. Boy, can she boss. And young Danny is a spitfire--I'd make him an honorary grandchild of mine in a heartbeat. These two are resourceful and resilient and Signora Rosanne writes about them with warmth and wit. This tale's got a lot of heavy things going on in it, but she still made this old Don laugh. Her dialogue is great, and this story moves along at a cracking pace.

And if that hasn't convinced you to stick your schnozz between the pages, I'll do you one better. I'll send you Michale's copy, signed by Signora Rosanne, and youse can see how great it is for yourselves. Tell everyone the Don sent it to you. (Just leave a comment down below, and I'll pick one random winner.)

Michale said he was going to edit my post when he got back, but time waits for no man, especially one who's burning through my business account and is probably spoon deep in a tiramisu. So I'm just going to tell you a little something about Signora Rosanne, and then I'll push the publish button.

About La Signora:
Rosanne Parry is the author of many award winning novels including Heart of a Shepherd, and The Turn of the Tide. Her newest novels are Last of the Name and A Wolf Called Wander, both on sale in the spring of 2019. She and her family live in an old farmhouse in Portland, Oregon. She writes in a tree house in her back yard. WEBSITE  TWITTER

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: ETHAN MARCUS MAKES HIS MARK by Michele Weber Hurwitz

ETHAN MARCUS MAKES HIS MARK by Michele Weber Hurwitz (Simon & Schuster/Aladdin, November 2018)

Michele Weber Hurwitz may be one of my favorite middle grade authors. I loved both Calli Be Gold and The Summer I Saved the World... in 65 Days and was honored to do a cover reveal of Ethan Marcus Stands Up. So, when Michele contacted me about reviewing her new book, I jumped at the chance.

And the Don and I were not disappointed! Read on:

What It's About:
Siblings Ethan and Erin Marcus may be only eleven months apart in age, but they're a million miles apart in every other way. Ethan's laid-back and doesn't plan beyond his next snack, and Erin's intense, super organized, and super serious. So when these two polar opposites both receive invitations to attend a prestigious tech/maker camp during winter break of seventh grade, complications are bound to happen. Erin's arch rival is attending too, and she's focused on beating him. But when neither of their inventions are working, Ethan and Erin realize the only way to succeed is to team up. Easier said than done.

Opening Lines:

Ethan: As worst days go, the Monday after Thanksgiving break is right up there with the last day of summer vacation.

What I Loved About It:
Michele Weber Hurwitz has an unerring ear for how middle schoolers express themselves, and she understands their world view. I loved how she told this story through multiple points of view (and if you are a writer attempting this, I would recommend this as a prime example of how to do this successfully.) Not only does Weber Hurwitz narrate through both laid-back Ethan and his sister, the intensely intense Erin, but she also has chapters in the voice of Ethan's best friend Brian, and Erin's friend, Zoe. Most importantly, we also get a POV from Marlon Romanov, whom Erin can't stand after he beats her in a science competition. In Erin's opinion, Marlon is arrogant and rude. But when we see things through Marlon's eyes, we understand him and feel for him. This could only have succeeded through this narrative strategy.

Michele Weber Hurwitz also gets full marks for her depiction of adult characters, and she does a great job of describing setting. As Ethan and Erin attend the tech/maker camp, Weber Hurwitz tantalizingly reveals that things are not what they seem.

This novel is full of Michele Weber Hurwitz's warmth, charm, and empathy. Her dialogue is spot-on, and the novel ends satisfyingly. This is a great school and sibling story, and I would wholeheartedly recommend it for readers who love true-to-life stories.

About the Author:
Michele Weber Hurwitz is also the author of two middle grade novels; The Summer I Saved the World... in 65 Days and Calli Be Gold. Both have been nominated for several state reading awards. She lives in the Chicago area with her family.

You can find more info about Michele on her WEBSITE, which I am a big fan of. Ciao!

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: THE FRIENDSHIP WAR by Andrew Clements

THE FRIENDSHIP WAR by Andrew Clements (Random House, January 8th 2019)

As chance would have it, I'm reviewing this the week after Greg Pattridge featured it on his Always in the Middle blog--which goes to prove that, at least for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday, there is absolutely no collusion.

But... The Don was rather miffed I got pipped at the post by Greg.

The Don: What's this I hear, Michale? This Greg guy, he runs the show, and he also gets to be the first talking about this friends- going-to-war book? Great title, by the way. What'cha going to do about it? Want me to send in the boys to pay this Greg a little visit?

Middle Grade Mafioso: I don't want any trouble, Boss. Greg's a great guy, and he's just a little bit more organized than I am.

The Don: Organized? You're part of an organization, ain't ya? This organization. Now, you want out, you just say the word. There's plenty of little fishes in the sea, just sayin'.

MGM: No, no, Boss. I'm happy doing your bidding. Now, you wanna hear about this book? I'll read it to you while you eat your antipasto. Look, we've got some cured meats, olives, peperoncini, mushrooms, anchovies, artichoke hearts, various cheeses... That's right, buon appetito!
(Phew! The rest of you--don't forget to read this review to the background sound of contented munching.)

What It's About (from the Penguin Random House website): 
Grace and Ellie have been best friends since second grade. Ellie’s always right in the center of everything–and Grace is usually happy to be Ellie’s sidekick. But what happens when everything changes? This time it’s Grace who suddenly has everyone’s attention when she accidentally starts a new fad at school. It’s a fad that has first her class, then her grade, and then the entire school collecting and trading and even fighting over . . . buttons?! A fad that might also get her in major trouble and could even be the end of Grace and Ellie’s friendship. Because Ellie’s not used to being one-upped by anybody. There’s only one thing for Grace to do. With the help of Hank–the biggest button collector in the sixth grade–she will have to figure out a way to end the fad once and for all. But once a fad starts, can it be stopped?

Opening Lines: 

Flying from Chicago to Boston by myself hasn't been as big a deal as my dad said it was going to be. But nothing ever is. The second I turn on my phone, it dings with three texts from him.

Why I Liked it:
Andrew Clements is a master of the middle grade voice, and he's picked a topic all those of us who live with middle graders are intimately familiar with: the all-consuming fad. Whether it be fidget spinners or Fortnite, something always seems to flood the market and literally everyone seems to be doing it or having one.

In this particular story, it's buttons. Grace, the main character, finds a stash of buttons on a visit to her recently widowed grandfather--and it's game-on after that. What brings in the conflict is the fact that Queen Bee Ellie has to get into the action and one-up Grace. This felt realistic, also. At this age, friendship and rivalry can be different sides of the same coin--and who among us hasn't had what the kids these days call a "frenemy?"

The novel reads very quickly, the middle grade voice is perfect, and the characters are fleshed out. I liked Grace's sweet relationship with Hank, and the fact that the ending was a lesson in the consequence of making bad decisions. I can't wait to see what Andrew Clements will come up with next!

About the Author:
Andrew Clements is the New York Times bestselling author of the beloved modern classic Frindle,which has sold over six million copies, won nineteen state awards (and been nominated for thirty-eight!), and been translated into more than a dozen languages around the world. Called the “master of school stories” by Kirkus Reviews, Andrew is now the author of over eighty acclaimed books for kids. He lives in Maine with his wife, Becky. They have four grown sons and two rascally cats. Visit Andrew online at andrewclements.com.

MGM: Okay, Boss, I see you liked this one too. What shall we read after dinner?  I guess we'll all know soon enough. Till then, ciao!

Photo: © George Clements

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: BOW WOW by Spencer Quinn

BOW WOW by Spencer Quinn (Scholastic, 2017)

This is the third book in the Bowser and Birdie series that my youngest son and I have read, the other two being WOOF and ARF.

What It's About (from Goodreads): 
A bull shark in the swamp? No one in the Louisiana town of St. Roch believes it at first, but when a local boy has a face-to-face encounter with the toothy monster, every big fisherman is called out for the hunt. There's a big cash bounty on the shark.

Sharp-eyed Birdie Gaux and her handsome dog Bowser can't help noticing that shark fever is causing some shady doings in town. For instance, where is Snoozy, the clerk who works at the Gaux family fishing store? He's the town's best fisherman, but suddenly he's missing. Is a rival bounty hunter behind Snoozy's suspicious disappearance? Or perhaps the marine biologist who said he'll do anything to keep the shark alive?

Birdie and Bowser are determined to find Snoozy and bring him home safe, but the job is more dangerous than they know. Bowser better practice his paddling: He and Birdie are heading for deep waters . . .

Opening Lines:
A car beeped outside our home at 19 Gentilly Lane. Beep beep. The beep beep of a horn hurts my ears in a way you probably wouldn't understand, since my sense of hearing is a lot better than yours. I didn't say better than yours, so don't be upset. But just between you and me, it is better! I hear sounds humans don't hear all the time!

What I Liked About It:
Bowser is a total character, and his narration is often very funny. As the series has progressed I've really come to enjoy Quinn's portrayals of his characters from the idolized-by-Bowser Birdie to Snoozy LaChance (always sleeping on the job) to Grammy with her harrumphs. The sticky, steamy bayou around St. Roch, Louisiana is almost a character by itself.

The mystery was slighter plot-wise in this one, but there were several perilous moments. I wonder what my 12-year-old thought...?

Twelve-Year-Old's Thoughts:
Honestly, I thought it was kind of boring. (Why?) Because it was one of those books where it took so long. I was expecting a mystery, like in the other ones, but this one didn't really deliver.
(Were there any good things about it?) It was funny on occasion.

Hmmm, interesting. The oldie liked it better than the target audience... I wonder how often that happens. Well, I better get looking for a book that both of us enjoy. Any suggestions?

About the Author:
Spencer Quinn is the pen name for thriller-writer Peter Abrahams. Under the Spencer Quinn name, he writes the Chet and Bernie mysteries for adults, and the Bowser and Birdie series for middle grade readers. A father of four grown-up kids, Abrahams lives on Cape Cod with his wife and two dogs, Audrey and Pearl, whom he calls "the kind of researchers writers dream of, showing up every day and working for treats."

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: PROPERTY OF THE REBEL LIBRARIAN by Allison Varnes

PROPERTY OF THE REBEL LIBRARIAN by Allison Varnes (Penguin Random House, September 21, 2018)

What It's About (from Random House page): 
When twelve-year-old June Harper’s parents discover what they deem an inappropriate library book, they take strict parenting to a whole new level. And everything June loves about Dogwood Middle School unravels: librarian Ms. Bradshaw is suspended, an author appearance is canceled, the library is gutted, and all books on the premises must have administrative approval.


But June can’t give up books . . . and she realizes she doesn’t have to when she spies a Little Free Library on her walk to school. As the rules become stricter at school and at home, June keeps turning the pages of the banned books that continue to appear in the little library. It’s a delicious secret . . . and one she can’t keep to herself. June starts a banned book library of her own in an abandoned locker at school. The risks grow alongside her library’s popularity, and a movement begins at Dogwood Middle–a movement that, if exposed, could destroy her. But if it’s powerful enough, maybe it can save Ms. Bradshaw and all that she represents: the freedom to read.

Opening Lines:

The front door swings open after I walk home from school, right on schedule. Except today, Dad holds my copy of The Makings of a Witch.
I grin up at him, but he doesn’t return my smile.

What I Liked:
June is a great character, and I was totally along for the ride in her first person narrative. What she worried about, and how she expressed herself were spot on. I also liked that this was a novel celebrating reading and taking on the topic of banned books.

I'm a huge believer in living parents in middle grade books, but June's parents were a bit too meddly. June and her sister Kate (who  is in college) are really not allowed to make many of their own choices without their parents' strong disapproval. However, this does give one the opportunity to discussing parenting with a middle grade reader, and how June managed (often through subterfuge) to work around the restrictions.

I also liked the subplot of June finding like-minded peers at school, and also the incipient romance. The author expertly captures what romance feels like at that age. The librarian, Ms. Bradshaw, is super cool--and June's speech to the school board with the media in attendance, is a show-stopper.

This novel does a great job addressing censorship. I just hope that it doesn't become a banned book itself!

About The Author:
Like librarian Ms. Bradshaw in Property of the Rebel Librarian, Allison Varnes has fought for her students. She taught English in special education for eight years and once had to convince administrators that The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is not an endorsement of witchcraft. She’s from a family of teachers and has a PhD in education from the University of Tennessee. And like heroine June, Allison is a former marching-band geek. When she’s not writing, she howls along to the Hamilton soundtrack with a trio of Chihuahuas named after Peanuts characters. Find her on Twitter at @allisonvarnes or on Facebook at facebook.com/allisonvarnesauthor.

MARVELOUS MIDDLE GRADE MONDAY: THE THIRD MUSHROOM by Jennifer L. Holm

THE THIRD MUSHROOM by Jennifer L. Holm (Random House Children's, September 2018)

What It's About (from Penguin Random House Website):
Ellie’s grandpa Melvin is a world-renowned scientist . . . in the body of a fourteen-year-old boy. His feet stink, and he eats everything in the refrigerator–and Ellie is so happy to have him around. Grandpa may not exactly fit in at middle school, but he certainly keeps things interesting. When he and Ellie team up for the county science fair, no one realizes just how groundbreaking their experiment will be. The formula for eternal youth may be within their reach! And when Ellie’s cat, Jonas Salk, gets sick, the stakes become even higher. But is the key to eternal life really the key to happiness? Sometimes even the most careful experiments yield unexpected–and wonderful–results.

Opening Lines:
"Maybe because I'm an only child, but my parents have always been a little obsessed with my eating. They insist that I try everything on my plate. That I eat what they eat. No chicken tenders off the kids' menu for me. If they have calamari or chicken livers, that's what I have to eat, too."

My Thoughts:
Jennifer L. Holm is such a wonderful writer! Her range--from cowriting the Babymouse series with her brother Matthew, to the wonderful Turtle in Paradise--is tremendous. The Third Mushroom is yet another great addition to her bibliography.

I particularly liked the presentation of the main character, Ellie. It's a pitch perfect point of view--worrying about friendships, being confused about feelings of romance, and loving both science and animals. There's also some magical realism--Ellie's grandfather, also a scientist, who has transformed himself into a 14-year-old boy. (FYI, grandfatherly curmudgeonliness does not feel out of place coming out of the mouth of a 14-year-old.)

One of my pet peeves in middle grade, as any longtime reader of the blog will know, is the dead parent motif. Here, Ellie's parents are divorced, but she gets on well with her stepfather. Holm does a great job of creating parents who are important influences in their child's life, but allow the child (and themselves!) to have lives of their own.

Finally, I really liked all the science in the book, and learned a lot about all the scientists who are mentioned. (There is an appendix which goes into more detail. Did you know that the two scientists who discovered that yellow fever was carried by mosquitoes deliberately allowed an infected mosquito to bite them? They contracted the disease and one of them died.)

Verdict: Jennifer L. Holm's latest is yet another success. It would be a great book to read with 8-12 year olds who like books with heart and humor and are interested in science.

About The Author:
Jennifer L. Holm is a New York Times bestselling children’s author and the recipient of three Newbery Honors for her novels Our Only May Amelia, Penny From Heaven, and Turtle in Paradise. Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on two graphic novel series—the Eisner Award-winning Babymouse series and the bestselling Squish series. She lives in California with her husband and two children.  Website

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: ARGOS by Ralph Hardy

ARGOS: The Story of Odysseus as Told by His Loyal Dog by Ralph Hardy (Harper 2016, paperback edition 2018)

Man, it's been a long time since I posted--and my absence hasn't gone unnoticed by the powers that be. Let me give you a bird's eye view (very topical, since there are a lot of birds in Argos) of what happened when the Don called me into his office earlier this month.

The Don: "Michale, Michale, where you been? I'm paying you the big bucks, and you haven't done any work since, when, June?"

MGM: "Sorry, boss. Things have just been a little busy on the home front..."

The Don: "What, you had another baby? Come on, time to stop with the progeny. You're not young any more."

MGM: "No, not a baby, but..."

The Don: "A dog? You got another dog? Don't you remember me telling you that one pooch was enough? You should get a bird of prey. I hear being a falconer is an impressive job." (Leans forward to pinch my cheek)

MGM: "No, not a dog either, boss. The truth is, the kids were off school, and we all decided to go to England..."

The Don: "England? What's in England? They don't make wine, they can't sing, and believe me, the pasta is terrible. You should have gone to Sicilia instead."

MGM: "Hey, speaking of dogs, look what came in the mail a while back." (Waves copy of Argos in front of his face). "It's about Odysseus' dog! Nice cover, eh? I'll get to my desk right away and review it."

MGM sprints for the door. The last words he hears are "It's Ulysses, not Odysseus. Next thing, you'll be telling me you prefer Zeus to Jupiter."

So, there you have it. We had a busy summer, but now school is back in session, and I can get back to reading and writing. Yay for September!

What It's About:
For twenty years, the great hero Odysseus struggles to return to Ithaka. After ten years beneath the walls of Troy, he begins the long journey back home. He defeats monsters. He outsmarts the Cyclops. He battles the gods. He struggles to survive and do whatever it takes to reunite with his family.


And what of that family—his devoted wife, Penelope; his young son, Telemachos; his dog, Argos? For those twenty years, they wait, unsure if they will ever see Odysseus again. But Argos has found a way to track his master. Any animal who sets foot or wing on Ithaka brings him news of Odysseus’s voyage—and hope that one day his master will return. Meanwhile, Argos watches over his master’s family and protects them from the dangers that surround a throne without its king.

Opening Lines:
"Sometimes a new dog will ask me my lineage, for I look like no other hound on Ithaka, most of which are small and bred to shepherd livestock, if they are bred for any purpose at all. When I am asked, this is the story I tell, if the question is not put to me rudely, as often happens in this age."

My Thoughts:
As a young lad, I loved Greek and Roman mythology, and The Iliad and The Odyssey were some of my favorite tales. I love that Ralph Hardy made the choice to retell the Odyssey through the eyes of Odysseus' loyal dog, Argos--because I am also a huge dog fan!

As befits an epic, the tale is dense: Argos is noble as well as loyal, and this nobility is captured in his speech. While Odysseus' travails are reported to him mainly by birds, Argos undergoes his own Odyssey, keeping his territory safe from wolves, helping Odysseus' son Telemachos learn how to hunt boars, taking revenge on the hideous suitors, and falling in love himself.

SPOILER: In keeping with the Odyssey itself, Argos lives long enough to recognize his master, but dies before Odysseus can reveal himself and lay waste to the suitors. The tale is finished by one of Argos' children, Leander.

This would be a great read-aloud in a middle school classroom studying ancient civilizations. Having a dog as a narrator is a great way to open up the world of this epic classic for a modern reader.

About  the Author:
Ralph Hardy graduated from the University of North Carolina with a degree in English and received his MFA from Columbia College, Chicago. He now lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with his wife and children and a dog named Harvey, who is nothing like Argos. He is the author of THE CHEETAH DIARIES, LEFTY, and a number of short stories.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: DASH by Kirby Larson

DASH by Kirby Larson (Scholastic, 2014)

This novel was in the 3rd-5th grade division in The Oregon Battle of the Books. My 5th grader and I enjoyed reading it together.

What It's About (from Kirby Larson's website):
Although Mitsi Kashino and her family are swept up in the wave of anti-Japanese sentiment following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Mitsi never expects to lose her home — or her beloved dog, Dash. But, as World War II rages and people of Japanese descent are forced into incarceration camps, Mitsi is separated from Dash, her classmates, and life as she knows it. The camp is a crowded and unfamiliar place, whose dusty floors, seemingly endless lines, and barbed wire fences begin to unravel the strong Kashino family ties. With the help of a friendly neighbor back home, Mitsi remains connected to Dash in spite of the hard times, holding on to the hope that the war will end soon and life will return to normal. Though they’ve lost their home, will the Kashino family also lose their sense of family? And will Mitsi and Dash ever be reunited?

Opening Lines:
"Mitsi Kashino packed her sketch pad, her binder, and her worry in her book bag. Dash sniffed the straps before flattening himself on top of it, muzzle resting on his front paws. He watched Mitsi with worried brown eyes. She ruffled the scruffy almond-colored fur on his head."

What I Loved:
Kirby Larson is a masterful writer, ast he first paragraph above shows. We immediately know that both the main character and the dog are worried, and we see that dog and girl have a wonderful bond. The paragraph which follows tells us that something has gone terribly wrong in Mitsi's world, but that she is hoping that things have righted themselves at school because time has passed.

Not so. Things are even worse.

The indignities suffered by Japanese-Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor are a shameful chapter in American history. The fact that these events are seen through the eyes of a ten-year-old girl ramps up the injustice of it all. We feel for Mitsi as her friends turn against her, as the mean girl at school taunts her, and as she is forced to leave her precious dog behind as her family is sent to an internment camp. Larson has done some great research, and we get all the sights, sounds, (horrible) smells, tastes, and dust from camp life. Throughout, Mitsi shows tremendous resilience, and we get to enjoy the "correspondence" she and Dash have.

This is the sort of novel which leads to great conversations about what can happen if a society falls prey to fear of "the other." And who can fail to love a story about a girl and her dog? Not this Mafioso.

P.s. Has there ever been a cuter cover? Just look at those puppy dog eyes!


About the Author:
Kirby Larson is the acclaimed author of the 2007 Newbery Honor Book, Hattie Big Sky, a young adult historical novel she wrote inspired by her great-grandmother, Hattie Inez Brooks Wright, who homesteaded by herself in eastern Montana as a young woman. That book, and encouragement from her mentor, Karen Cushman, gave Kirby the confidence to embrace her passion for historical fiction; she has since written the Dogs of World War II series (Scholastic), which include Duke, Dash (recipient of the Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction Prize), Liberty and Code Word Courage. Kirby melded her passion for history and mystery in Audacity Jones to the Rescue, and Audacity Jones Steals the Show (nominated for a 2018 Edgar Award).

Kirby lives in Kenmore, Washington with her husband, Neil. When she’s not reading or writing, Kirby can be found beachcombing or bird watching with Winston the Wonder Dog.

Website   Facebook   Twitter

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: STICKY NOTES by Dianne Touchell

STICKY NOTES by Dianne Touchell (Delacorte Press, 2018)

The latest novel from Australian author, Dianne Touchell. In Australia the title was Forgetting Foster, published by Allen and Unwin in 2016.

What It's About (from Goodreads):
For fans of Counting by 7’s and Fish in a Tree, a touching story about the power of love and family in the face of a parent’s early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Foster Sumner is ten years old. He likes toy soldiers, tadpole hunting, going to school, and the beach. Best of all, he likes listening to his dad’s stories.

But then Foster’s dad starts forgetting things. No one is too worried at first. Foster and Dad giggle about it. Dad would go out for milk and come back with cat food, when the cat had been dead for five years. But then the forgetting gets worse. And suddenly no one is laughing anymore.


A heartbreaking story about what it means to forget and to be forgotten, as well as the devastating effects of Alzheimer’s and the strong families behind those who suffer from it.

Opening Lines:
"Foster smelled it first. A bitter smell like microwave popcorn popped too long. Except Dad wasn't making popcorn. dad was making bacon sandwiches."

What I Liked About It:
First off, I thought the writing was luminous, at times almost poetic. On every page, there's a fantastic phrase--just the right verb, or pinpoint adjective. Just opening the pages at random I find "Foster would run out back and climb that jacaranda... and sometimes he'd see his dad watching out the kitchen window, his stare rasping just like his walk." (What a lovely and descriptive word rasping is for a stare.)

This is a tough book. Tough subject matter--early onset Alzheimer's in a parent--and tough, unflinching characterizations. It had a fairy tale quality to it, and not just because Foster loves stories with dragons and princesses. Every character has a dark side--Touchell is most definitely not a writer given to sentimentality. She's thrown curve balls at almost everyone: Foster's mom is disfigured from an accident, and struggling just to make it with a spouse who is barely there mentally. Foster's aunt is a complicated character. She provides some balm for Foster, but just as often antagonizes her sister-in-law. Foster himself is angry and petulant at this terrible turn of events, and yet he perversely enjoys the interest of his classmates when he tells them of the "crazy" things his dad has done.

As such, it is difficult to know quite who this book's ideal reader is. Despite the character's young age (seven in the Australian edition, ten in the American), I think it would be a book better savored by older teens or adults. For writers, Touchell's sentences are worth studying, a reminder of the power of a well-chosen word. It makes me think of that quote by Mark Twain: "The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning."

About the Author (from Goodreads):
Dianne Touchell is a middle child who feared Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy — and any other stranger who threatened to break into the house at night.


She has worked, amongst other things, as a nightclub singer, a fish and chip shop counter girl, and a bookseller. Dianne would rather talk to her dog than answer the phone.

Dianne's other novels are Creepy and Maud and A Small Madness. I liked her writing so much I have the other books on order!